Features
The agony and the ecstasy of the drink of the Gods
By Dr Nihal D Amerasekera
“In beer there is freedom,
in wine there is health,
in cognac there is power,
and in water there is bacteria.”
—Anonymous
Fermented beverages have existed since the neolithic period 10,000 BC. Alcohol has played an influential role in many ancient cultures and civilisations from China to Egypt. Romans even had a God of wine, Lord Bacchus. The Greeks had Dionysus, God of wine and ecstasy.
Many of us are social drinkers. Alcohol is a drink that reaches the parts of the mind to mesmerize, captivate and enthral us. The amber nectar can reduce inhibitions and make social interactions easier. At the opposite end of the spectrum alcohol has the propensity to create mayhem, destroy families and ruin lives. It is almost impossible to predict if a person will remain a social drinker or turn into an alcoholic. This uncertainty together with the sinister dark side of drinking there are strong enough reasons to remain teetotal. Many of the religions forbid the consumption of alcohol. There are many in the world who abstain and sip nothing stronger than aqua-minerale.
I’ve been a drinker for much of my life. I remember with such clarity my very first drink. It was Christmas and I was an inquisitive 14-years old spending a holiday with my cousins in a rubber estate in Warakapola. The grownups were merrymaking and the booze flowed freely. They all had a late night and were in a deep slumber. My cousins and I raided the drinks cabinet. We drank far too much than was good for us and were sick as parrots. It was a lesson learnt the hard way to regulate and pace our drinks.
The drinking culture is well established at universities. There is a tendency to feel excluded if one doesn’t drink. As a fresher there is much peer pressure to drink and also to drink in excess. It is a perfect breeding ground for alcohol addiction. As I joined the medical faculty drinking started with the rag and continued into the infamous Law-Medical cricket match. During the match booze was dispensed from barrels, an excuse to drink in excess and misbehave.
This was more youthful exuberance than hysterical nonsense. This culture somehow drifted seamlessly into the final year. There were many boozy evening parties held at the faculty’s Men’s Common Room. This was our paradise where we felt liberated. It was tremendous fun. My abiding memory of those parties is the music and the dancing in various stages of inebriation. I never missed an opportunity to join in the fun. They will always remain a wonderful memory of the happy and carefree days of my youth. I admire and applaud the few who had the courage of their convictions to remain sober and still enjoy the fun and the frolic of those parties. Some held a glass of ginger ale to create an optical illusion.
My father enjoyed a drink but I have never seen him drunk. While I was at University, he sometimes offered me a drink. But I was too shy and too respectful to drink with him. After I qualified as a doctor, we enjoyed a tipple together. He always poured his own and allowed me to do the same. Father seemed to love this ritual. I think it gave him immense pleasure.
The early 1970’s wasn’t a particularly happy time in my life. I was working at the Central Blood Bank in Colombo. I pined for friendship to forget my troubles. I became a pillar of the Health Department Sports Club at Castle Street. The Club was a magnet for health workers who loved a drink and a chat in the evenings. There I was never short of company. I can still remember the bar, the ambient lighting and the soft canned music that played continuously.
We talked politics, philosophy and careers and a multitude of other fascinating subjects that were made compelling by the amber nectar. Cheap and cheerful, arrack was our drink, it seemed to soothed my pain. On an evening It gave me immense pleasure to walk through those familiar portals of the Club. A day that stands out in my memory is when a few had gathered around the smoke-filled bar. On that warm evening I sat with my drink over-looking the shimmering lights of the surrounding buildings.
As the night wore on a young lad strummed his guitar and began to sing those well loved popular songs of CT Fernando, Chitra and Somapala and Sunil Santha. I remember well his beautiful rendition of that all time favourite “Tika venda nala, konde kadala”. The cleverly parodied sensuous lyrics were an instant hit. As I walked to my car that evening I could still hear the clapping and the slurred voices in the distance.
At times, I realised to my horror, I was there at the Health Department Sports Club for a drink all on my own. This wasn’t a good sign. Living with my parents I was never short of sound advice although much of it went unheeded. It is easy for alcoholism to take hold insidiously. What hounded and heckled me often was a short verse in our pharmacology textbook by D.R Laurence. In his brilliant description of the treatment of alcoholism was the sombre lament of an alcoholic who had accepted the inevitable “Doctor, goodbye, my sails unfurled I’m off to try the other world”.
My life then was on a spiral of decline. What finally saved me from seeing pink elephants was the constant nagging of my parents and the news of the MRCP(UK) Part 1 examination to be held in Colombo for the first time. The latter gave me an opportunity to focus on a worthwhile ambitious project. I had to buckle down to some hard work and also to move away from the tight grip drink had on me.
Giving up the carefree life I loved was a colossal task. Good friends and friendships are worth their weight in gold. The energy, enthusiasm and the sheer determination of my ambitious friends at the General Hospital Colombo steered me in the right direction. As I burnt the midnight oil, crystal clear Labugama water became my favourite drink. Success at the examination was a defining moment in my life. I had finally left my troubles behind and celebrated with friends, where else but at my beloved Health Department Sports Club. Not many have the good fortune to return from the brink as I have done.
Moving to work in England required a work ethic and self-discipline. The onerous routines of ward work and on-call duties kept me busy and fully occupied. I had to remain sober to study and appear for professional examinations. Then came marriage and a young family requiring self-restraint. During those years alcohol was a rare luxury. As the children became teenagers nearing 18, we enjoyed a drink together as a family. Drinking then was confined to wine although my preferred drink was whisky. Watching cricket has always been my passion. I have such fond memories of the exhilarating effects of Champagne watching cricket at the Lord’s cricket grounds, bathed in the summer sunshine.
Reflecting on my years in hospital, I recall the busy hustle and bustle of patient care. The hospital is also a place of friendship and camaraderie. The doctors often gathered together for joyful soirees, formal dinners and posh parties. At those events no expense was spared. The drinks flowed freely, they were lively, entertaining and most memorable. By then drinking and driving had become a serious crime. We all have learnt to drink sensibly. Those who let their hair down and drank a few more for the road, were taken home in taxis.
Retirement left time on my hands. There is now a great desire to have a drink in the evenings to help while away the time. Alcohol does give an extra boost when watching sports or a film or listening to music. I have found to my disgust that I cannot now tolerate alcohol as much as I did in my youth. The hangovers are more unpleasant and tend to last longer. Despite all that I still enjoy a drink. For my age I need to take greater care to protect my health. I have learnt to enjoy and appreciate the seraphic peace of sobriety during the week, enjoy wine at weekends and whisky only on special occasions.
The drinks industry worldwide is huge and they support a well-established drinking culture. With drinking so widespread it is important that we are all aware of its hazards. Education is key and is a long term commitment to make us all mindful of the risks and benefits of drinking. This should be done in schools and universities. Religious leaders can play an important role too.
There has been much publicity in the medical literature about the calamitous consequences of drinking. The safe limits are quantified in units. I take a cue from the experts for advice and would recommend visiting the website Much more can be done by the media to bring this issue out into the open. I have often wondered, if I knew as a teenager, what I know now about alcohol, whether I would be a teetotaller today.
Life is tougher now than in my youth and certainly more competitive. Navigating through life can be daunting and even traumatic. Through my own experience I realise how easy it is to depend on alcohol as a helpful prop. I know for certain that in reality, alcohol can never shield me from life’s problems. Drink can so easily spiral out of control and drift into the path of no return.
I remember with much nostalgia and great sadness the many school friends and medics who died of alcohol related illnesses. My best friend, who rose up to become the head of the Cancer Institute at Maharagama sadly succumbed at the age of 58. He was talented and had much to offer society when he was sadly snatched away. May this brief narrative be a dedication to his memory. May his Soul Rest in Peace.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
US sports envoys to Lanka to champion youth development
Rahuman questions sudden cancellation of leave of CEB employees
